Upon Ruin and History
by abski0206
Summary: It has been said that demons hunt out the most broken of souls to sustain their own deprived desires. Yet what would happen when a certain demon comes across a broken soul with potential and chaos to be released? Will he be the one to break her or save her? Or will she be the one to break the demon? (Claude Faustus X OC)
1. Chapter 1

Upon Ruins and History

 _It has been said that demons hunt out the most broken of souls to sustain their own deprived desires. Yet what would happen when a certain demon comes across a broken soul with potential and chaos to be released? Will he be the one to break her or save her? Or perhaps both…_

Her heart pounded ruthlessly against her straining ribcage. How on earth a normal day could turn into a nightmare so quickly, she did not know. Twisting her tired body, the girl coughed, her chest heaving as her eyes watered. She didn't really understand or in fact fully comprehend her current situation but out of all the chaos, she could still acknowledge the feeling of impending dread. Sudden bangs echoed around her and although her body was almost numb from god knows what it had just been through, she refused to give up. Struggling once more to get out from what she believed was rubble; she heaved her body one last time and felt a small wave of relief as she finally got free from the constricting grasp of death.

Yet this small sense of freedom was fleeting as all of a sudden the loud noises around her stopped and instead it was replaced with a deafening silence. Her wide watery eyes remained transfixed upon the clouds of smoke and dust which surrounded her and it was only when she saw a dark shadow like silhouette begin to emerge from the fog that her eyes blinked, wishing that the thing in front of her was but a dream. Unfortunately for the girl this was not a dream and slowly, as though it was taunting her, the spectre crawled forwards, its darkness drowning any remaining light. Her scratched and bloody arms which had been the only thing holding up her tired frame collapsed beneath her as she gave a small sob. Rolling onto her back, the young girl looked up at the darkness trying to ignore the inevitable. Closing her eyes she braced herself for the end. She wished that her legs would be strong enough to pick herself up but judging by the pain which was shooting up her leg, she didn't think it was an option. She had no idea how much time passed until the silence was broken but her breathing had finally began to settle. Her heart thumped like a dull throb, as though her very being was giving up.

"Giving up already?" A dull voice mocked from above. The girl gasped, her eyes snapping open in alarm. In her state of shock she could only gape as there above her was a silhouette of a large monster. Something which could only emerge from the darkest corner of the mind and yet she was entranced by the shining golden eyes that shone through the darkness. The eyes were almost hypnotising and through all the beauty of the colours, there were no emotions behind them. Without replying to the thing, the girl's numb arms began to work, slowly pushing her away from the beast. But as she pushed upon the cold floor, her arm almost fell though and she gave a sharp cry as the floor beneath her was almost web like. The sticky threads wrapped themselves around her body, totally constricting any movement. As they tangled around her torso, she felt a sudden tug and her body was pulled up, her legs dangling lifelessly in the air.

"my my my said the spider to the fly" the voice mocked once again, its dull drone laced with amusement. The girl in response whimpered hoping that whatever hell she was in would end soon.

"My dear Elise, I was under the impression that you were a fighter. Am I mistaken?" The voice asked, its tone becoming louder.

"What d..do you want?" She whispered, her voice trembling ever so slightly. The web around her chest tightened ever so slightly and she felt a lone teardrop trickle down her pale cheek.

"Do you want to live?" The voice asked abruptly, ignoring her previous question. The dark silhouette began to move closer and Elise tried not to scream as she was suddenly very aware of what the creature was above her. As it moved closer, its eight legs became far more noticeable and Elise slammed her eyes shut, debating her response. Finally, after what felt like an eternity she replied.

"Doesn't everyone?"

"I did not ask about everyone, I asked about you". The creature snapped back, its voice laced with irritation. His irritation was not only evident in its tone as the web round her squeezed painfully causing her to cry out. After gaining her breath back, she gave a defeated sigh.

"Yes, I do want to live".

"Yet your words do not echoed the sentiment" The creature sneered. Elise opened her eyes almost angrily at the creature's words. She felt as though the beast was playing with her and after the events she had just been subjected too hours ago, she had already accepted that her fate was sealed that night. Yet his words rekindled something she had not felt in a long time. She felt desire, hope and most of all an opportunity at having a second chance. Taking a deep breath, she looked the beast straight in its golden eyes.

"I want to live, I want to make things right again. I desire equilibrium". Her words were loud and clear. The beast remained still for a few seconds and then moved even closer towards her. For the first time she got a clear glimpse of the thing that had been toying with her. There, inches away from her face, were two long fangs and multiple eyes all like black diamonds except the two glowing golden ones, which were the most piercing of them all. Without opening its mouth it began to speak and Elise believed that if a spider could be smiling, that the one currently in front of her was almost certainly grinning.

"Care to make a deal my dear?"


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N Hello all! I hope everyone is enjoying this story so far and I'm happy to see that it has already had some interest (thank you for the kind review Anthem of the Night!) thank you again for reading and I hope that you guys will enjoy!_

 _Chapter Two_

Elise yawned sleepily, her dainty hands gently rubbed her tired eyes and she slowly emerged out of the cream sheets which were still warm. The words from her nightmare still echoed through her mind and her slow movements were suddenly replaced with rapid flailing as she tried to jump out of the bed as fast as possible. Hectically, the young girl rushed round the spacious bedroom, her arms yanking open as many draws as she could as she muttered words under her breath. A sudden creak from down the hall reached her ears and Elise whipped her head round quickly before continuing her search. Within seconds she had pulled out a lilac dress and had already shoved it upon her body when a small tapping noise came near the door. Before she was even able to get out a reply, the door was pushed forcefully, revealing a tall skinny figure of a woman.

"Mistress, you should not dress oneself. It is not appropriate for someone of your standing". The women sneered as politely as possible, her long fingers fidgeting with a strand of greasy hair which had escaped the older women's tight bun. Elise in reply, just turned around and rolled her eyes dramatically. Her maid was perhaps the most odious being she had ever met; or rather the second most as the first was currently downstairs waiting for her to wake for breakfast.

"Apologies, I am terribly sorry for the inconvenience that I have caused. I will head down to breakfast at once!" Elise exclaimed, her voice laced with sarcasm. Quickly, she picked up her somewhat dishevel skirts and started towards the direction of the door. However, her stride was halted when rough hands grasped her upper arm, yanking her backwards.

"You are not to leave this bedroom looking like you have been dragged through a bush backwards". The maid snapped. "Mistress". She added quickly as an afterthought. With a long defeated sigh, Elise allowed herself to be escorted towards the uncomfortable chair and closed her eyes as she prepared for the rough handling of her long, slightly knotty, golden hair.

After enduring the hellish debacle of having her hair brushed, which Elise believed that she was fully capable of doing it herself without it being an ordeal, she made her way downstairs slowly. The staircase was monumental in size with the wooden steps draped in a plush deep red carpet. Overall, Elise would admit that the mansion was striking; it's golden and red walls, velvet curtains and a multitude of fine paintings made the mansion feel more like a palace. All in all she could not complain about her surroundings. But what she could complain about however, was the thing in the next room. The very room which she was heading towards.

The towering golden doors opened slowly, pulled away by two young gentlemen whose eyes were both coal black, as though they were dead inside. Elise ignored their unsettling stares and never bothered to even acknowledge them as her last attempts were met with the same blank look. Her stride was as confident as it could be and as always he was slightly taken back by the beauty of the dining room. Its ceiling was far hugher than any she had seen before and painted upon it was a glorious fresco of angels and many other godly beauties. She wanted to laugh at the irony of such a dispay in regards to her current predicament. Entering the room fully, Elise continued to look forwards and her eyes never left the tall imposing figure whose very presence was dominating the entire room. If anything could juxtapose the holy scenery which sheltered her, then the man in front of her defiantly could. There stood at the very end of the high table, with his white gloves clasped in front of his pristine waistcoat, was the most odious being she had ever met and she did not mind displaying her disgust towards them. His piercing golden eyes were shielded by glass. The glass however was glinted due to the natural light emerging through the velvet curtains and although she could not see his eyes, she knew damn well that they were looking at her. Hungrily.

"My lady, for breakfast I have prepared your favourite". Came the same dull voice which had echoed from her dream only hours ago. She muttered a soft reply under her breath and sat rigidly in the awaiting chair that the tall man had pulled out. As he gently lowered the plate of pastries in front of her, Elise shuddered at the close proximity and tried to discreetly lean away. However, this only seemed to encourage the man to lean forward even more.

"Did you sleep well, my lady?" He asked, a hint of a smirk tugging at his pale thin lips. She held her tongue in reply and carried on eating as though she had not heard a thing. "Any dreams perhaps?" He asked again.

"A few". She replied vaguely and then suddenly stood up, her appetite lost. She hated his mere presence as he was a constant reminder of what hell she was currently living in. Without so much as a blink, Elise began to walk out of the dining room hurriedly and headed straight for the garden, her pale eyes burning with unshed tears. As she walked, her breath caught when a sinister chuckle echoed from the dining room, causing her to almost sprint through the servant quarters towards the back of the estate.

Once she was outside, she slammed the wooden door behind her, and leant heaving against the wood trying to regain her breath. She felt that in the mansion she had hardly any chance to think or get her mind in order. Especially with the current occupants breathing down her neck. Slowly, she walked down the path leading towards the small woodland that resigned not that far from the household. Glad that she could at least have some time to herself, she sank to the floor when the mansion was no longer in sight. Its imposing presence long lost due to the towering trees that protected her from its unforgiving grasp.

Her nightmare only hours before had been anything but a nightmare, in fact it was the twisted reality she was currently enclosed within. With her dress already muddy from the woodland floor, Elise allowed herself to fall back and feel the small strains of light warm her face through the trees. Underneath her petite frame, a selection of leaves littered the floor, all of them a multitude of colours highlighting how summer was most certainly over and that autumn was beginning. Soon enough she knew the winter would arrive and her small escapes in the woodland would be far less soothing on her tormented soul.

Yet even this warmth could not dry her tears or warm her broken heart. Closing her eyes she thought back to the beginning, wanting to understand how it all happened. And perhaps more so, she wished to understand how she could make it all better.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hello all! This is quite a large chapter and I hope that everyone enjoys! Sorry for the lack of updates recently but hopefully that will change soon! I would like to thank everyone who has reviewed as well as it means so much to hear feedback, especially positive feedback haha. To answer Anthem of the Night- I just liked the name Elise but I am also a fan of Beethoven and classical music so maybe I subconsciously chose it haha. Anyway onwards to the story!**

Chapter Three

Elise believed that it would be wise to start from the very beginning to fully comprehend how she got in her current position. As a daughter born into a very wealthy household, it was almost hard to think that she would have faced many problems. Especially in comparison to the less fortunate than herself. But it appeared that a vast quantity of money was almost as deadly as having none of it and unfortunately she discovered this the hard way.

Her family was large, or more so when considering her extended family and due to money there were large divides that caused brother to hate brother and sister to hate sister. It would have been a miracle to get some of them in the same room and Elise was not surprised that she had never met all of her family. In regards to her immediate family, her mother and father were not bad people and neither was her brother, although arguably a tad obnoxious. Yet Elise believed that her brother only acted as he did as he knew that he would be the inheritor of a large fortune. Thinking back to her family caused Elise to grimace for a number of reasons but still she thought back to the beginning.

She supposed it all began the day that a letter arrived at the door of her family estate. It was not as vast as the mansion which she was currently living in, in fact it was reasonably small considering her families standing. Her father had wanted a smaller country house as opposed to the garish estates his brothers had. Anyway, the letter was addressed to her father and requested that the family would come and ride to her uncles and stay the night to finally settle the disagreements that had embedded themselves within the family. Elise new her father was a good man and he had immediately accepted the invitation, finally glad that at last he could get to the bottom of the childish disagreements that had fractured their relationship for so long. The disagreement in question was over inheritance as her father was the oldest of the family and therefore had inherited the most. Yet, his other siblings had found the divide in money rather unfair and as the years went on, hatred began to settle deep into the very roots of their family. Jealously drowned out any love and resulted in hatred. It was all rather petty Elise thought at the time and in fact still did. Although at the time she had no comprehension of how deep rooted the hatred really was.

So as the days drew closer to the family setting off on a long journey to finally make amends, Elise was struck down by a bad bout of flu which lasted several days. At the time, Elise had been devastated as there had been promises of vast libraries and large ballrooms to explore and yet she found herself bedridden. She was seventeen, only a month away from her eighteenth birthday and though she may have acted young to some, she had a far older mind than she was credited for. Due to her illness, Elise therefore was resigned to the fact that her family would have to travel without her and come back in a few days. Her brother, Victor, had come to visit her and goaded her slightly about what she had to miss out on. She remembered sobbing into her pillow after he left, wishing that it was he who had been struck down with the flu rather than herself. Especially as he was more concerned with seducing women at the ball which would be held in their honour. All in all Elise had been quite devastated at the turn of events and reluctantly said goodbye to her family.

As she was bedridden, her lovey maid, Mary, stayed by her side and looked after her. Elise could remember clearly how Mary would read to her as she was unwell and would dry her head when the fever became too much. With the love and care from her maid, Elise soon recovered in a matter of days, yet she was still largely exhausted from the illness. As the days went on Elise constantly asked the little staff they had at the house if her family had written at all. And every day the same reply would be no. Elise would be lying to say she wasn't hurt or sad that her family had forgotten her and images of them laughing and being happy without her were painful to imagine. It wasn't that she didn't want them to be happy; it was rather the thought that they were happy without her. After the week went by and there was no communication from her family, Elise began to get worried. They were a day late when Elise finally received letter which was from her uncle. The letter was brief and requested her to visit at once as there had been an emergency.

As Elise thought back she realised how reckless her actions had next been. She had been at the table when she and received the letter and it was in seconds that she was already up and out of the house. She didn't know what quite possessed her to jump on a horse she could barely ride and gallop away for a few hours but her worry for her family knocked all common sense from her. The ride was bitter and her emerald dress whipped her legs as the wind began to turn rough. Her golden hair stung her pale face and tears ran down her cheeks as the wind forcefully pushed on. The weather should have been a sign she thought. Yet at the time she carried on despite nature doing everything possible to make her turn back. Her uncle's house was in the middle of nowhere and although she had never visited, she had overheard her father giving instructions to their coach driver whilst she had been in bed with the flu. She remembered key points her father had spoken of and hoped that even in the terrible weather she would be able to locate the mansion.

After what felt like a lifetime of riding, Elise had finally spotted the rather isolated house which dominated the landscape. It was lit up and she could tell that the structure was made of marble. As she rode closer, she felt her mouth fall open as it became more visible. There looming was the largest mansion, or rather a palace, that she had ever seen. The window frames were painted in the most exquisite gold and there were several roman columns across the face of the house. The path leading up to the house was littered with varying candles of different sizes and as she got closer she watched as the door opened slowly. She would never forget the figure who stepped out of those imposing doors. Her eyes remained transfixed as a tall man with golden eyes walked slowly from the door. His eyes made her shiver and she found herself almost gaping at him. He was dressed as a butler but she would have easily mistaken him for nobility had he not been in those clothes. If it wasn't for the fact that she was out of breath and worried she thought she would have blushed at his stare which was fixed on her.

She remembered the horse finally coming to a halt and a long white gloved hand suddenly appear. Elise had no chance of speaking before she was pulled gently from the horse and into the arms of the butler. As he placed her on the floor, she fell forwards and grasped his lapels causing the man to grab her waist, pulling her to his chest. She would never forget how fast her heart beat against his own hard chest. Elise gasped and looked directly into his equally surprised eyes. The man looked as though he was in deep thought and it was only when she coughed that he finally snapped out of it.

"My lady, your uncle has been deeply worried for your wellbeing and hopes your travel was not too tiring". He said in a rather dull tone yet his eyes spoke differently, they looked conflicted.

"My family… please-" she started but her voice was cut off by a booming male voice from the doorway. Still in the butlers long arms, she turned and for the first time saw her uncle. He was an odd fellow with a large moustache and a tweed suit that looked a little too tight. His expression was not one of concern or worry as she had anticipated but rather of sheer delight. As Elise thought back, that should have been a telling sign that something was evidently wrong but at the time she was too tired and worried to have really cared.

"Ah! My darling Elise, I am so happy you arrived at last. Faustus, bring her in!" Her uncle shouted and before she could react, the butler by the name of Faustus had lifted her up and was walking into the house. Yet what she saw confused her. Unlike the beauty of the outside, the inside was freezing cold and the walls were damp. The once blood red carpets looked worn down and ripped. All in all it was total surprise and Elise had to contain a gasp. Yet as she looked round at the butler who had still not let her down from his strong grip at the butler, she was surprised to see him watching her reaction.

They proceeded to walk further through the house until her uncle stopped outside a rather large set of decaying doors. Elise wondered if her other relatives and her parents were in there but her thoughts were stopped when she was put on the floor by the butler. Her uncle gave the butler a pointed look and she watched as the butler walked away slowly, yet his eyes never left her own.

"Now my dear, I will apologise now as this is truly some awful business. I didn't really want it to come to this but my wife and I came to a rather final decision a few hours ago. Please go in and see your parents and then when you are ready just ring the bell and we will discuss the future". And with no further words, her uncle walked away. Elise remembered standing there for a few seconds wondering what on earth her uncle was on about before opening the door. When she opened the door any happiness that had ever existed in her life disappeared in those moments.

There led out in a row on the tattered and now stained carpet were the bodies of her parents and brother. They were all in some state of decomposition which suggested that they had been killed probably upon arrival. Elise collapsed onto the floor, her mouth open but not a sound coming out. Her eyes stung as tears cascaded hot a fast down her cheeks. She couldn't believe it, she didn't want to believe it. Crawling on her hands and knees she gagged at the smell but still approached the bodies.

"No….no…." she mumbled brokenly at the figures of her once happy family. Trying to breathe, Elise then noticed the golden bell that was placed upon her father's chest. It was almost mocking her and slowly she crawled away from the bodies. She had hardly any time to process the situation when she heard voices outside the door whispering loudly. Moving closer to the door, she felt her already heavy heart break.

"Why is she taking so long".

"Can't we just kill her now".

"We must be patient my darlings".

It was as though something primal had possessed her and her instinct to live kicked in. With whatever sanity she had left, she realised that they were still on the ground floor of the house and very quietly she walked over to the window. The window in question was shielded by dust filled dark blue curtains which only allowed the smallest light through and with a gentle tug, Elise pulled them down allowing the moonlight to flood the room. She wished to some extent that she hadn't done it as the dimly lit room had hidden the true horrors of the grotesque sight of her families rotting bodies. Feeling a new wave of tears flow she took a deep breath and turned back to the window. Wiping her eyes as fast as possible to see out of the window she spotted her horse had been left and felt a burst of hope. Carefully she took off her long green skirts knowing that they would only slow her down later, leaving her in a pair of bloomers, long white stockings and small black shoes. If she was spotted it was surley to have been a scandal but at that stage she didn't really give a damn what anyone else thought. Shivering she was still very aware that there were people out the door, so she moved slowly towards the abandoned fireplace where a large brass candlestick had been placed on the mantelshelf. Carefully she picked up the dusty piece of metal and moved back towards the window. The room which was now washed in the moon's glow allowed her to see the horrific scene more clearly and she nearly dropped the candlestick holder when she spotted dried blood and mangled hair at the very top. Feeling sick that she was currently holding the very instrument for her mother's demise, she gave once last look at her parents and brother.

"I am so sorry and I love you all so very much". She whispered brokenly. Knowing that she had only a few minutes to escape, she took a deep breath and slammed the brass candlestick holder into the old murky glass, the crash reverberating against the walls.

It was time she made her escape.


End file.
